We tested six of the most sophisticated zero-turn mowers designed for residential use and made some surprising discoveries along the way.

Ariens EZ Rider 915 Series

Ariens EZ Rider 915 Series

It's no secret that Americans love their lawns. Not so cutting them, however. The average person wants to get that lawn mowed in a hurry and then get on to the next job or perhaps something fun. And even people who like to cut their lawns have their limits. This ambivalence - love the lawn but hate the cutting - has resulted in a demand for machines that cut grass efficiently and make fewer physical demands of the operator. Over the years, manufacturers have developed more efficient grass-cutting machines, and the most recent expression of this is known loosely as a zero-turn mower. This is a machine that steers using the rear wheels and is far removed from the traditional front-wheel-steering tractor design of other products.

The Zero-Turn Trend

The machines that we tested are direct descendants of the commercial cutting machines introduced several years ago. They are designed to cut so closely around obstacles that they nearly eliminate the need to trim. One advantage of these machines is that they pivot through 180 degrees without leaving a circle of uncut grass (the radius or diameter of the uncut circle is one measure of a conventional mower's cutting ability).

The typical design of a zero-turn mower has each rear wheel connected to a hydrostatic transmission - a device that creates wheel rotation using pressurized fluid. Rotational force from the engine turns a pulley-operated pump that pressurizes the transmission fluid. When you move a steering/speed lever, you are controlling the flow of fluid through the transmission and the rotational speed or the forward/reverse direction of a drive wheel. Maximum lever movement means maximum fluid flow, which translates into a rapidly turning wheel. If one drive wheel turns more rapidly than the other, the machine moves along a curved path. If both wheels turn at the same speed, the machine follows a straight path. If one wheel stops and the other turns, or if the wheels turn in opposite directions, the mower pivots.

Are these machines a good fit for you? It's true that they deal effectively with maneuverability - aggressively so, in fact. The question is: Do you want or need that much maneuverability? Read on to sort it out.

Shake Out

Well, here's how it all shakes out. Husqvarna has had years of experience with its machine overseas, so it has had time to work the bugs out of its design. Its machine proved to be the most refined and easiest to use. It was comfortable and comparatively quiet, and its four-wheel design allowed it to work well over either smooth or bumpy ground. In all, it's a great mower.

Next is the Simplicity. Although it tested as the loudest mower, it was well designed, and it cut nicely.

The Craftsman and Ariens mowers, not surprisingly, ranked very closely together, with the Craftsman just barely edging out the Ariens for third place because it seemed slightly more comfortable. The Ariens is appreciably quieter, however.

We wanted at least one of the test mowers to mark the outside edge of what a homeowner can buy, and this slot was assigned Cub Cadet because it was the only manufacturer that had such a broad line of these machines. The Cub received high marks for its rugged, commercial-like construction, but it handled a bit too aggressively, we thought, so it's probably not a good fit for the suburban homeowner. We would recommend, however, considering the company's smaller, lighter and less powerful mowers.

That leaves the Snapper. The testers were unanimous on this one. We understand that Snapper wanted to build a big, rugged machine that's simple to operate and maintain, hence the single joystick. But we just don't agree with where the company took the product's design. If you like the basic, farm implement nature of Snapper's products, perhaps you will like this mower. It just wasn't for us.

Cub Cadet Zero-Turn Rider 365L

Cub Cadet Zero-Turn Rider 365L

Price: $6299

Engine: 18 hp**

Deck/Cutting Height: 54 in./1.25-4.25 in.

Weight: 750 lb.

Length: 84 in.

Gas: 4.5 gal.

Warranty: 2 yr. R

Ground Speed: 7 mph

Tire: 9x19 in.

Noise Level: 90 dBA

By far the most nearly commercial machine, the Cub was the fastest and most powerful, and it had the largest deck. But those characteristics come at a price, literally, and we wondered whether an aggressive machine like this might be a bit more than the average homeowner needs or wants. Put it this way: It's there if you want it, but the company also offers two other machines that cost about $2000 less and may well be a better fit for the average suburbanite. When we were a bit overzealous in operating this machine, it tended to spin a wheel mark into the lawn. A final note: The Cub was the only machine equipped with a safety PTO disengagement in reverse. That is, when you reverse the mower while cutting, the mower automatically disengages, and although you can continue to move in reverse or forward, you have to disengage the PTO and then re-engage it to resume cutting.